Between Veterans Day and Thanksgiving, authorities in DeKalb County, Alabama, booked 22 people aged 18 to 64 on drug charges stemming from 13 separate operations, including one raid Monday night at what police describe as an alleged "drug house."
The sheriff's office's narcotics unit and special response team teamed with agents from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Task Force on a search warrant served at a home on County Road 712 near the town of Henagar, DeKalb County Sheriff's Office spokesman Tyler Pruett said in a news release.
Six people were arrested during Monday's raid, all charged with possession of drugs with intent to distribute, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to officials. Another person was arrested at the house and charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Authorities allegedly found 14 grams of methamphetamine, an unspecified amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, according to Pruett.
"On Monday night of this week, we were able to close down a drug house that has been a menace to the Henagar and Ider area with the help of the Special Response Team and state task force. The SRT is made up of law enforcement officers from all over the county," Sheriff Nick Welden said in the release.
More than a half dozen traffic stops made Nov. 11-26 landed another 10 people behind bars on a variety of charges, according to officials.
After a traffic stop Nov. 11 on County Road 572, two people each were charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Two people were arrested Nov. 12 after authorities allegedly found 56 grams of meth and "large amount" of marijuana. The amount wasn't specified. Officers also found meth precursors and paraphernalia, Pruett said.
On Nov. 13, a Fort Payne resident was charged with possession of a controlled substance, drug paraphernalia and marijuana after being stopped on County Road 78. Officers allegedly "detected a strong odor of marijuana" coming from the vehicle the person was in.
On Nov. 14, Sylvania police stopped a vehicle and allegedly found synthetic marijuana. The driver was charged with possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia.
Two traffic stops on Nov. 19 resulted in two unrelated arrests. The first suspect was booked on charges of possession with intent to distribute and possession of drug paraphernalia after an estimated 12 grams of meth were found during a traffic stop on Alabama Highway 75. A second traffic stop the same day on Alabama Highway 35 led to the arrest of a second person on charges of possession of a controlled substances - meth and heroin - possession of marijuana, second degree, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a prohibited beverage. That suspect was allegedly found with an open alcoholic beverage and unspecified amounts of heroin and marijuana, authorities said.
On Nov. 26, two Albertville residents were each arrested on charges of possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia after they were stopped on County Road 108 and officers allegedly found methamphetamine, marijuana and paraphernalia.
Two other encounters led to brief chases, one involving a man who was charged with resisting arrest, attempting to elude police and possession of a prohibited beverage after he allegedly fled police who attempted to stop him on County Road 468 on Nov. 22. On Nov. 27, a Rainsville resident was arrested after a brief foot chase in the Powell area, authorities said. An officer checking a house at the request of the owner saw a vehicle pull behind the home and the occupant run as he approached. The suspect was taken into custody a short distance away and charged with attempting to elude police and on outstanding, unspecified felony and misdemeanor warrants.
A joint search with Jackson County authorities Nov. 17 at a home on County Road 803 led to the arrest of two people who were each charged with possession of drug paraphernalia.
Officers on Nov. 19 served a Dade County, Georgia, fugitive from justice warrant at a home on Highway 75 near Ider and allegedly found a woman in possession of drug paraphernalia and meth during the operations.
Finally, DeKalb County deputies and Henagar police on Nov. 27 went to a home on County Road 138 where they found an Ider woman who was wanted on charges in multiple counties, Pruett said. She allegedly had meth and marijuana in her possession, as well as paraphernalia. She was charged with possession of meth with intent to distribute, possession of marijuana, first degree, and possession of drug paraphernalia in connection with her arrest, as well as on the outstanding warrants.
"Counternarcotics operations are one of our top priorities as a department," Welden said.
"Many of our crimes are tied into the drug problem. If we do our best to take away the supply of dangerous narcotics, it will take away the motivation for thefts and the fuel for violence," he said, expressing thanks for other agencies who participated.
Contact Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569. Follow him on Twitter @BenBenton or at www.facebook.com/benbenton1.